A note on operator breakin:

We don't have DSL but do have a separate line for the e-hookups. For quite a long time we didn't have a monitor phone on the 2d line, so an operator could break in and break the connection to the computers, but there was no phone to ring if they tried to wake someone up.

You'd have the same situation if for example you unplug the phone in a motel/hotel to plug your laptop in. Many "road-warriers" carry - or used to before DSL became common in hotels -a "jack doubler" so they can plug both the phone and the laptop/modem into a single jack just for that reason.

While the monitor phone that I plugged in is mainly just for checking whether it's the line or the ISP, it probably is a good idea for emergency callback, and seems okay now that the no-call list seems to be working.

John